Revision 1
March 19, 1998
by Radiation, Science, and Health, Inc.,
Edited by J. Muckerheide

1.2.5
Weapons and Facility Releases

1.2.5.2
Public

1.2.5.2.2
Marshall Islanders and 'Lucky Dragon' Fishermen
 

"People on the Marshall Islands were exposed to fallout from the thermonuclear BRAVO bomb test on Bikini atoll on March 1, 1954 (Conard et al. 1980). The radiation dose to the thyroid glands of the residents of the Utirik atoll was in part from external gamma rays from fallout dust (1.75, 0.69, and 0.14 Gy for those on Rongelap, Alingnae and Utirik atolls respectively) and in part from inhaled and ingested radioiodides. Doses of the ingested radioiodides were calculated from the I-131 content of pooled urine samples collected 15 days after the first exposure (Conard et al. 1980, 1984); the dose contributions from the short lived radionuclides I-132, I-139 and I-135 were assumed to be equal to 2-3 times the I-131 dose. Two-thirds of those on Rongelap atoll and 5% of those on Alingnae atoll suffered nausea within 48 hours. Half of the Rongelap atoll natives developed partial epilation beginning 2 weeks after exposure, indicating significant total-body and body surface doses. By 8 years after exposure, two boys who were 1 year of age when they were irradiated were diagnosed with myxedema (Conard 1980). Nine years after exposure, the first thyroid nodule was noted in a 12 year old girl"

"The thyroid status of the Marshall Islanders 27 years after exposure is summarized in Table 5-4. Although the dose estimation is open to question, the prevalence of hypothyroidism, thyroid nodules and proven thyroid cancer all appears to increase with dose (Conard 1984)."